I got my first led flash light today: infinity ultra.

Well my infinity ultra arrived today, just 7 days after I mailed bright guy a check. Very nice service from that company, as always. I must say I was a bit surprised at how small the infinity ultra is. It's not much bigger than one single aa battery. I quickly looked it over to check for imperfections, and noticed than the led appeared to be off center.

I have a room in my house that is almost absolute black when the light is turned off, so I used it for my first impression. Well the light was very soft, and the outer circle very smooth with clean edges. The center of the beam seems a bit fuzzy, but I'm not sure if that is because the led is off centered or not. It's a very nice beam either way, but unfortunately not nearly strong enough for my primary EDC light.

I think this will be a great light for indoor use, but it's hard to see it doing much good outside at night. I would imagine that the darkness just swallows up the beam, making it fairly useless in night time urban applications.

When I visit my friend at their apartment, this is not the light I want to use for making my way though their dark parking lot.

Still it only uses one tiny battery, and I can see it coming in handy for a variety of house chores. I just wouldn't want to use this light for personal security.

I ended up paying around 25 bucks for this light (including shipping) and there's no way I feel it was worth that much, but it might grow on me once I use it a bit.

Raven

Raven - Sorry you're disappointed in the light. As others mentioned before, you'll find it very useful in dark situations with little or no ambient light. Even the Ultra is too bright in some cases and I use the original Infinity for nightime trips to the head to avoid waking the spouse.

For urban adventuring, I would recommend carrying a Scorpion or an E2.

Well it's a nice light for what it is, just a tad too dim for my needs. I can find plenty of uses for it around my house, but outside I'll have to go with something brighter. Don't get me wrong. I do like the infinity. It looks well crafted. It only uses 1 aa battery. It's super small, and puts out a very nice pattern of light. Just not enough light for crime prevention.

I suspect I'll use it every week for the next 10 years, either for working on my computer, peering behind furniture for lost keys, rummaging through the back of my closets, and any number of other odd chores that need a bit of extra light to get the job done.

I'm glad I bought it. Just not necessarily happy with the price )

Raven

Originally posted by Raven:
I'm glad I bought it. Just not necessarily happy with the price )

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Hmm, well then trust me, long about February or so... stay far away from ARCs site. You reeaaaally won't like the price on the next ARC AAA.

Raven, did you have a lithium battery in it? Of course you realize they have a 10 year shelf life and will indeed render the "brightest" amount of light out of it that you can get with an AA battery. Well worth it! Great little torch to stash for an emergency. It's a nice addition to a collection...

Originally posted by BuddTX:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Originally posted by Raven:

I think this will be a great light for indoor use, but it's hard to see it doing much good outside at night. I would imagine that the darkness just swallows up the beam, making it fairly useless in night time urban applications.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Quite the opposite. If you were in a totally dark situation, with NO ambient light, this baby would be suprisingly VERY BRIGHT.

Buy you are right, for "night time urban applications". a brighter light is in order. I would recommend a Streamlight 4aa, 7 LED or a Brinkmann Legend LX for a good combination of brightness and compact size.</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">the brinkmann would be a far better choice for those needs, the streamlight 4aaaled isn't even in the same ballpark, as long as you can find 123's that you can afford?

The light is awesome once you realize it's specific purpose, which it sounds like you are getting closer to. To light up stuff in the distance or to light up shaded areas when everything else it lit by ambient lighting (e.g. near a tree under streetlights, etc) you will one one of the other lights like the E2 that provide more of a spotlighting effect.

Once you realize how much time it goes in between feeding vs. the other lights, you will really appreciate it.
I put my first lithium AA in around Thanksgiving, use the light every night and have yet to see any dimming.
Something like the Inova X5T might work well as a span between the E2 and the Ultra. Nice, bright enough light for 20 feet or so away, but long runtime as well.

Originally posted by BuddTX:
Quite the opposite. If you were in a totally dark situation, with NO ambient light, this baby would be suprisingly VERY BRIGHT.

...snip...

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">You are not kidding. I'm the "go to bed late, wake up early" person in my house - My wife and kids are in bed (I'll be there in about 20 minutes), and I'll be up again about 5 hours from now! Many a time I've wished for a DIMMER flashlight than my ARC AAA! I won't carry the Photon anymore (which is dimmer) because it keeps getting turned on in my pocket

When I'm checking on my son, I usually put a finger over the front of the AAA, and shine it through my finger - that's enough light to see if you are dark adapted

I guess I'll throw my two bits in here. I carry an ARC AAA around with me all the time. I shine it outside sometimes just to excersize it if you will.

I also own an Infinity Ultra.

No, they will not light up something very far away. No, they will not deter a bad guy from doing you harm.

Yes, they are enough light to just walk with. They will keep you from tripping or stepping in a hole or a pile of dog doo.

I find my ARC AAA quite useful in my job of repairing pressure washers. I have to crawl under some of them and use two hands. The ARC can be held in my mouth and directed to where I need light. It weighs next to nothing as a bonus!

And maybe they do cost a bit much. However I do not believe there is much of anything I could do to hurt either of them.

Sorry you feel like you do, but many of us LIKE ARCs and Infinitys.

Lastly. The M*g Sol!ta!re I used to carry around is my go to the can light. You can't even see the light from it in daylight. But it is plenty bright enough for midnight duty.

definitely drop a lithium in there, you might be surprised. i like the clip on it best, i clip it to a baseball cap when working on the car, or in a computer case, etc. in my mind it is a "task light", and task lights get 10x more use around the house.

i dont use it to walk the dog though, look at some of the other ones guys have suggested

as for the price, well it kinda shocked me at first too, but if you look at the prices of some of the other flashlights out there that everyone covets, 25 clams isnt much at all.

One way to "save" money is to get several lights at the same time. TTS has the Ultra for $15.99. If you get a couple other lights you won't pay any postage for the Ultra

I guess everyone's definition of what's "bright enough" will be different.

I'll use a flashlight - when walking without a light would be uncomfortable - which normally means in a regular urban environment (with the abundance of street lighting) - I do not need or use a flashlight.

In much darker conditions than that, is where I would need a flashlight otherwise I'd walk into some hazard - my minimum requirement (YMMV) is to be able to illuminate to where my next step would be - centered about 3 feet in front holding the flashlight in the hand with arms hanging naturally and see clearly - beyond or brighter than that would be "nice" but more than what I need.

I find that even my old (now dim) Photon 1 yellow is just adequate for the purpose - but I would prefer something a bit brighter.

I have both a CMG Ultra-G and Ultra and both would be definitiely more than bright enough to walk by - as in my definition - with a bit to spare.

Further corroboration would be the ArcAAA which is very popular on cpf (winning the 2002 Lummies) - I believe most will attest that the ArcAAA is bright enough to walk by outdoors - the CMG Ultra in most comparisions I have read is as bright if not a shade brighter than the ArcAAA.

Luckily for me my first LED light was a Photon - I was amazed by how bright it was for its size.

A Photon 2 or 3 White would be about the same "ballpark" brightness as the ArcAAA or CMG Ultra.

Perhaps you can please let us know what sort of regular non-LED incandescent flashlight you would consider bright enough to walk through that dark car park by?

Here are a couple of related posts on cpf:

CMG Ultra-G

CMG Ultra-G vs. Ultra

CMG Ultra...good choice.

I believe the Ininity Ultra and Arc AAA define what's good in an LED flashlight.

-Small enough to EDC
-Regulated
-Nice even white light
-Great runtime/size ratio

If you're idea of a flashlight is something that puts a spot on an object in the distance, you will be disappointed. These babies excel as task lights, not long throw spotlights. Carry the Infinity for a while and you'll find yourself using it more and more. It will grow on you.

A little word on 'brightness'. I was in a dark room with a friend and turned on my Ultra and put the beam towards the ceiling. After a short while, I decided to turn that one off, and pull my Arc LS out and light that one up. Well, I did so, and my friend said it was TOO BRIGHT!! When your eyes are used to dark, some flashlights may be too bright, however, a flashlight like the Ultra will be just perfect.

Food for thought.

Originally posted by Raven:

I think this will be a great light for indoor use, but it's hard to see it doing much good outside at night. I would imagine that the darkness just swallows up the beam, making it fairly useless in night time urban applications.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Quite the opposite. If you were in a totally dark situation, with NO ambient light, this baby would be suprisingly VERY BRIGHT.

But (edit, changed from Buy) you are right, for "night time urban applications". a brighter light is in order. I would recommend a Streamlight 4aa, 7 LED or a Brinkmann Legend LX for a good combination of brightness and compact size.

If you want something small (like fits in a pocket...but not on a keychain) for a bright light in an urban (light polluted) environment, you could try the PT Attitude. It is about twice as bright as the Ultra.

If you need something even brighter (you might), you could try an incandescent like the PT Rage. This is the same compact, easy to carry body like the Attitude but it is REALLY BRIGHT for its size.

If you are going to use it a lot, you can run it on NiMH rechargeables (either light). I have both and really love my PT Attitude. I use it for 95% of the times I need a flashlight. Although, at night, I too have to be careful of where I shine it when I'm up when no one else is. When you are dark adapted...it is quite bright.

PT Attitude @ TTS $16
PT Rage @ TTS $9

These two flashlights are some of the "best buys" in the lighting world! (IMHO)

BTW...you won't be sorry you bought the Ultra at the price you paid. It is very well built and will basically last you the rest of your life without ever buying a new bulb for it ever again. When have you ever bought a flashlight like that!